5 Magnetic Tile Games for Kids

Magnetic tiles are great for children to build with but there are many more ways to use them. We love using them to make our own games and grids and have come up with five easy and fun games for kids to play. These games are so easy to set up that kids could do it on their own. We used bottle caps and wooden blocks for counters but you can use anything you have at home that fits in the squares.

Check out the video to see how to set up and play the games or read further down for a quick outline of each game. Click the image to view the video in Youtube.

Download the arrow and number cards below to use them at home.

Read a bit more about the five games and why we think they are great for kids to play!

Magnetic Tile Board Game

Make your own board game with magnetic tiles by connecting them to make a path. You could also make a square outline if you prefer this for your board game. Make sure you have a start and a finish. Find a dice and a counter for each player who will be playing the game. You can use anything for counters, from Lego figurines to coloured bottle lids. Each player rolls the dice and moves along the game board by taking turns. The first player to reach the end is the winner! This game is perfect for dot recognition and counting practice.

Directions Game Grid

Make a large grid with your magnetic tiles. Have a starting spot on the bottom row and and end spot at the top. Place a few obstacles in the grid using anything you have like bottle lids, blocks etc… Use the direction cards to work out a clear path from start to finish. Lay out the arrow cards to show the sequence of movements that another player would need to move in to get to the finish. Test out your sequence by asking another person to follow the arrow cards and see if they can get to the finish. This game is great for teaching directions and unplugged coding skills like sequencing.

Tic Tac Toe

Play a classic game of tic tac toe by creating a small square grid with nine magnetic tiles. Find two sets of counters, one set for each player. We used bottle lids for our counters. Take turns to place a counter in the grid and try to get three in a row horizontally, vertically or diagonally. The first person to get three in a row is the winner. This game is great for developing strategy skills.

Roll and Fill your Grid Game

Make two square magnetic tile grids in the size of your choice. Find two sets of counters, one set for each player and make sure there are enough counters to fill each board. You will also need a dice. Each player takes turns to roll the dice and places that many counters in the grid. The first player to fill their board is the winner. For the final roll, you must roll the exact number you need to finish your board. This game is great for dot recognition and counting.

Colour Match and Fill Game

Make two square magnetic tile grids in the size of your choice. Make sure that each grid has a mix of colours for this game. Use the colour cards downloadable from above and give them a shuffle once printed and cut. Next, you will need to find loose parts in the colours that match your grid. We used wooden blocks but you could use anything like Duplo blocks, coloured stones and counters. For this game, each player takes turns turning over a colour card. If your grid has a square with that colour, you can fill it with a coloured loose part. If you don’t have an empty square in the colour you turned over then you miss a turn. The first player to fill their board is the winner! This game is great for colour recognition.

Those are our five game ideas! We hope you have fun playing them!